Print system and printer device facilitating reuse of print data

• US 6,842,263 B1
• Filed: 10/05/1999
• Issued: 01/11/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Saeki, Iwao
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams, Kimberly A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ebrahimi, Saeid
• Application Number:
  US09/412,762
• Time in Patent Office: 1,925 Days
• Field of Search: 358 115- 118, 358/1.6, 358/1.13, 358/442, 358/404, 709/1, 395/186
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1203 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. print management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1204 resulting in reduced user or operator actions, e.g. presetting, automatic actions, using hardware token storing data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1208 resulting in improved quality of the output result, e.g. print layout, colours, workflows, print preview
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/121 Facilitating exception or error detection and recovery, e.g. fault, media or consumables depleted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1213 at an intermediate node or at the final node
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1214 at the submitting node
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1234 Errors handling and recovery, e.g. reprinting G06F3/1261 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1244 Job translation or job parsing, e.g. page banding
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1267 Job repository, e.g. non-scheduled jobs, delay printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1273 Print job history, e.g. logging, accounting, tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1288 in client-server-printer device configuration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/129 in server-printer device-client configuration, e.g. print flow goes from server to printer and then bidirectional from printer to client, i.e. the client does not communicate with the server

Abstract

A print system includes a communication path, a client device which transmits print data to said communication path, a host device connected to said communication path, and a printer device which prints the print data after receiving the print data from said client device via said communication path, and automatically sends the print data together with printer output information to said host device via said communication path, said printer output information including keywords for identifying said print data.

Claims

1. A print system, comprising:

a communication path;

a client device which transmits print data to said communication path;

a host device connected to said communication path; and

a printer device which prints the print data after receiving the print data from said client device via said communication path, and automatically sends the print data together with corresponding printer output information in addition to the print data to said host device via said communication path, said printer output information including keywords for identifying said corresponding print data, and which keywords are usable for a search of the corresponding print data.

2. The print system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said printer device operates as a selected one of virtual printers, and said printer output information includes an identification of the selected one of virtual printers.

3. The print system as claimed in claim 2, wherein said printer device stores in a memory thereof an appendix-data list including names of the virtual printers and keywords associated with each of the names, and the printer output information includes the keywords associated with the selected one of the virtual printers.

4. The print system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said printer device receives client information from said client device, and said printer output information includes the received client information.

5. The print system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said client device allows a user to set the client information at said client device.

6. The print system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said printer device stores in a memory thereof a data list, and wherein said client device receives the data list from said printer device, and generates the client information by allowing a user to set the client information based on the received data list.

7. The print system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said host device stores in a memory thereof a data list, and wherein said client device receives the data list from said host device, and generates the client information by allowing a user to set the client information based on the received data list.

8. The print system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said printer device sends the print data together with the printer output information to said host device when the received client information indicates transmission of the print data, and does not send the print data together with the printer output information to said host device when the received client information indicates no transmission of the print data.

9. The print system as claimed in claim 4, comprising a plurality of host devices that includes said host device and are connected to said communication path, wherein said printer device sends the print data together with the printer output information to a selected one of said host devices that is indicated in the received client information.

10. The print system as claimed in claim 4, comprising a plurality of host devices that includes said host device and are connected to said communication path, each of said plurality of host devices including in a memory thereof a data list and sending the data list to said printer device, wherein said printer device sends the print data together with the printer output information to one of said host devices that is selected by comparing the received client information with the data list sent from said plurality of host devices.

11. A printer device connected to a client device and a host device via a communication path, comprising:

a memory unit which stores print data therein sent from the client device via the communication path;

a printer engine which prints the print data stored in said memory unit; and

a processing unit which automatically sends corresponding printer output information together with and in addition to the print data stored in said memory unit to the host device via the communication path when said printer engine prints the print data, said printer output information including keywords for identifying said print data, and which keywords are usable for a search of the corresponding print data.

12. The printer device as claimed in claim 11, wherein said processing unit incorporates client information into the printer output information, the client information being received from the client device via the communication path.

13. The printer device as claimed in claim 12, wherein said printer device sends the print data together with the printer output information to the host device when the client information indicates transmission of the print data, and does not send the print data together with the printer output information to the host device when the client information indicates no transmission of the print data.

14. The printer device as claimed in claim 12, wherein said processing unit sends the print data together with the printer output information to a selected host device that is indicated in the client information when a plurality of host devices are connected to the communication path.

15. The printer device as claimed in claim 12, wherein said processing unit sends the print data together with the printer output information to a selected host device when a plurality of host devices are connected to the communication path, said processing unit selecting said selected host device by comparing the client information with data list sent from the host devices.

16. A printer device connected to a client device and a host device via a communication path, comprising:

a data buffer which stores print data therein received from the client device via the communication path;

an image rendering unit which generates image data by expanding the print data stored in said data buffer;

a frame buffer which stores therein the image data;

a printer engine which prints the image data supplied from said frame buffer; and

a control unit which automatically sends the image data to the host device via the communication path, when said printer engine prints the image data, together with corresponding printer output information including keywords for identifying the corresponding image data, and which keywords are usable for a search of the corresponding print data.

17. A printer device connected to a client device and a host device via a communication path, comprising:

a data buffer which stores print data therein received from the client device via the communication path;

an image rendering unit which generates image data by expanding the print data stored in said data buffer;

a frame buffer which stores therein the image data;

a printer engine which prints the image data supplied from said frame buffer;

a text buffer which stores therein text data corresponding to the print data; and

a control unit which automatically sends at least one of the image data, the print data, and the text data to the host device via the communication path, when said printer engine prints the image data, together with corresponding printer output information including keywords for identifying the corresponding image data, and which keywords are usable for a search of the corresponding print data.

18. The printer device as claimed in claim 17, further includes a text-extraction unit which extracts the text data from the print data stored in said data buffer, and stores the text data in said text buffer.

19. The printer device as claimed in claim 17, further includes a character recognition unit which extracts the text data from the image data stored in said frame buffer, and stores the text data in said text buffer.

20. The printer device as claimed in claim 17, further includes a memory unit which stores a flag, wherein said control unit selects said at least one of the image data, the print data, and the text data that is indicated by the flag.

21. The printer device as claimed in claim 17, further includes an index-generation unit which generates index information from the text data, and said control unit sends the index information as part of the text data to the host device via the communication path, said index information including the keywords for identifying the text data.

22. The printer device as claimed in claim 21, further includes an index buffer which stores therein client information received from the client device via the communication path, wherein said index-generation unit adds the client information to the index information generated from the text data.

23. The printer device as claimed in claim 21, wherein said control unit selects based on the index information whether or not to send said at least one of the image data, the print data, and the text data to the host device.

24. The printer device as claimed in claim 21, wherein said control unit selects based on the index information which data of the image data, the print data, and the text data is sent to the host device.

25. The printer device as claimed in claim 21, wherein said control unit sends said at least one of the image data, the print data, and the text data to a host device that is selected based on the index information when a plurality of host devices are connected to the communication path.